Customer Doesn't Pay - Here's What I Did!

[@TomtheTaxiDriver]

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[@littlemissy2883]

One thing you didn't touch on in this video, how would you deal with a woman or girl, who jump into your cab,( not knowing the situation) and said "drive, please drive"

[@Aoocci791]

FUCKING SELL OUT!

[@hammalamiri12]

Black cab driver once returned my phone to the shop I was visiting by calling them first. Even refused a tip. What a gent and one of the reasons I continue to use them ❤

[@Smurfis]

Unlike mine that stole my Gucci scarf lol

[@Roy-qn2ie]

I see people not paying often on the Fake Taxi episodes, it however always ends up well i feel.

[@FabsPlay]

😂😂😂

[@peteb3091]

Agreed.

[@bigmaxcc]

A man of culture 😄😎

[@EmuGamesMaster]

Hahaaha

[@derekcharlton6001]

😂😂😂

[@howdymartin6258]

Tom - I accidentally left my phone in a Taxi in Barcelona last week - spent an hour trying to track him down (on a Sunday) via the receipt to no avail and was needing to be at a hotel 250 miles away so had to call it quits... then I heard the sound of a car horn and he had driven round the location repeatedly and seen me. He not only returned it but declined 50% of the "reward" I offered him. Noble people cabbies!

[@foreignparticle1320]

I make a point of using a cab at least once whenever I go to London, and that's purely because of this channel. The insight I've got into the taxi ecosystem and cabbies like Tom makes the act of taking a cab feel like a critical London experience.

[@AndyJay15]

I returned somebodys phone a few years ago, I said I didn't want any money and he thanked me before practically throwing £30 at me and running back inside his house. A few months later I took an old fella to the hospital at around 2am, very quiet and I dared to ask if everything was okay. When we was almost there I asked if he was alright and he started to explain his wife is about to pass in hospital. When I stopped the car I told him to get to his wife and don't worry about the fare (I think it was around £16). He broke down and started thanking me. Good karma exists and it's always worth being a nice person

[@garymuckle1002]

Ive had a bloke dive out of the window, ripping the arm out of his suit... couldnt chase him for laughing

[@DiamondCake2]

I like to think it was a rental and he had to pay like £200 for a replacement lol

[@theogrant528]

Destroying a £200 suit to hop a £20 fare is an interesting move.

[@A.Servidor]

​@@DiamondCake2even if it was a cheap one, you can bet that £40 stung his stingy little heart lol

[@derekcharlton6001]

Spoke to a customer a little while ago she told me she had £10,000 in cash returned to her by a black cabbie , she never knew where she had lost it there was her sons phone number on a bit of paper amongst the money so the cabbie traced her through that , fair play to the guy plenty of people out there would of kept that

[@DG-mi2mc]

1 hour 12 min driving to travel 7.5 miles is crazy😂😂😂

[@nicolad8822]

Yep just use the tube.

[@lonewolf280]

That’s London for you

[@dcflake5645]

Almost could have walked

[@PickoMoto]

I had a customer once go to me "what would you do if I got out at these red lights and ran?" I responded with "I am in a vehicle, love to see you try.", end of the fare he never ran, and he tipped me for bantering back. 😊

[@DownundaThunda]

I'm a former taxi driver in Canberra, Australia, and one story I have was that I was working one Saturday night in the CBD, a load of bars and nightclubs. It's approaching 2 am, I have a little more than an hour before I have to return the taxi for the next driver (I didn't own the taxi, I was just a hired driver for the owner.) While I was in the rank, waiting for a fare, three people approach the taxi, two supporting the third. One of the people supporting taps on my window and I roll it down. Asking me to take their friend who looked like they didn't even know what planet they were on, home. I said yes, expecting one of them to come with the friend to make sure they got home safe, but once the friend was loaded into the cab, the other two vanished. I guess they went back to the bar. So, I turn to the person they loaded into the taxi, and I ask for an address to take them. They look at me, and said "I'm not telling you where I live!" I was momentarily stunned by this response, but I decided on a compromise, and I asked them to tell me the suburb they lived in. And this seemed to mollify them. So, I start the meter and pull out, heading to a local set of shops in the suburb they said. The ride went pretty uneventful until I pull into the carpark of the small shopping plaza. They look around and say simply "This isn't my house" I explained to the passenger that I need their address to take them to their home. It took a little more back and forth before they finally agreed and told me the address. I drove them home, which was only about 3 streets away from the shopping plaza I took them to initially. I was a taxi driver for only 2 years, but that, thankfully, is the worst intoxicated passenger story I have.

[@mariemccann5895]

You clearly have a lot of time on your hands now.

[@wannabetrucker7475]

Ugh, can't stand drunks

[@haunter4708]

I can’t believe the person’s “friends” not only went in the cab with him, but didn’t even endure the driver knew where tf to take him. Wow.

[@maxk6522]

Police Officer here, for people not paying you can detain them under a citizens arrest until police arrive. No police officer would prosecute a cabbie for keeping the offender in the taxi, just don’t get physical for your own sake!

[@ispi_video_photo]

After a few years driving, you tend to learn many of the tricks that potential bilkers try. One of my favourites was someone pretending to be on their phone to someone at the other end agreeing to come out and pay, usually their "mother". You just know they have no intention of paying and kick them out at the first opportunity. Satisfying if they're going out of town somewhere..

[@regularguy3665]

When I started on the buses one of the driver trainers told me that you can see them in the queue, who’s gonna try and have you on or whatever. And it’s true.

[@lakesideaudio]

It’s always a pleasure to jump in a cab when we go to London, cab drivers nearly always really friendly, knowledge and happy to chat thank you London Cabbie

[@andyscot611]

I had a few phones left in my taxi when I was a taxi driver in Dublin. Not doing it now. After returning a few with no tip I decided they pay the taxi fare for me to return it to their location.

[@RobertClaeson]

I've left a few phones in black cabs in London and have always had to pay the regular fare from wherever the taxi driver was to my location to have it returned. Lessons learned - I now always, always check the seat, floor and anything else before closing the door.

[@InclusiveDriving]

Being self-employed is awesome. If I have an nhs worker who needs to learn to drive an adapted vehicle through illness or injury, their lesson is free. NHS folk look after each other.

[@1eddwood]

If I find a phone in the back and it rings I will inform the passenger that I will have to put the meter on and charge them for the fare . Never had a problem that way

[@realtalk4329]

proper way to do it.

[@Harald.]

As a passenger, I would feel bad if you didn't.

[@franktuckwell196]

Always got a great buzz when re-uniting lost property, left on trains (When i worked for BR) with its owner. Usually via the (mum no. on phones), we've had people in tears as we return their property.

[@Moloko_b]

I had no idea about the Great Ormond Street Hospital for free freebie, Tom and I think it's amazingly generous of the taxi driver to offer this. There's a famous children's hospital here in Liverpool, Alder Hey Children's Hospital and in all my years of going there, never once been offered the journey for free but there we go. It sucks that people do do a runner from taxis and this vid has been an eye opener to how you deal with it. Cheers and take it easy, fella 🙏❤

[@ganishnutinishnu7370]

I am 38, I've been going to great Ormand street all my child hood, never once got offered the cab fare for free lol

[@allthegearnotaclue]

I was a cabbie in Southampton for a number of years. On a very quiet night I picked up a young lad who wanted to go outside of the city. It meant I would do the run and not gat a fare back so would be on dead mileage back into the city. Anyway, the lad decided he didn't want to pay so I simply took him back to where I picked him up, after all, I was going there anyway. Then I gave his description out to base who contacted all the other companies who notified their drivers. I trust he enjoyed his walk home in the early hours.

[@Drdee1]

A taxi driver once told me that he had locked the doors and taken a non-payer to a police station. If you fancy a colab, how about asking the Blackbelt Barrister who's also on YT if he has a legal view on whether that's the right thing to do. A friend's dad used to only do taxi ranks and pre-booked work on Dial-a-Cab because he got fed up with people running off without paying. Qualified in 1969, had to give up a few years ago

[@MargaretUK]

I thought about a collab with BBB too, that would be a good video to watch ☺

[@Fitzrovialitter]

Some KZbin fans wet themselves with pleasure when they think of a "colab" between two of their favorites.

[@bren8168]

I've been waiting for this video ever since I found your channel years ago.

[@yumi456]

In my country taxis are unfortunately way to expensive to use it often, but I also have a cute Story. One morning while going to work, my dad tripped and broke his hand. At that moment a taxi driver was passing by and stopped. He saw that my dads hand was broken and took him to hospital without wanting a fare. My father insisted on giving him at least something. So they made a deal that the taxi driver would come to our home in a few days and my father gave him a bottle of wine to thank him.

[@nimitz42]

Iam PHV dog car I had a fare where a couple were taking thier dog to the vets for PTS. The couple were devastated poor lady sobbing in the back comforting her dog, we arrived I said "on me" I knew exactly how they were feeling after losing my staff a couple of years ago!

[@djFedz]

Editing on point on this one Tom! Love it

[@harrisonjames7489]

In the abstract of Laws, i cant remember the page but you can lock people in. Its along the lines of ´you can hold the passenger until an officer arrives to obtain correct details for the cabman to lodge a complaint with the courts´. I always have the law book with me just in case this situation arises.

[@proodst03]

Can't believe you mentioned my area, Never knew you've been near sunbury

[@superwelshman]

Sorry…why was Lissan Grove a no-go zone?

[@stan464]

Known area for fake cash. (Likely an organised crime ring location/area)

[@MrLoopy52]

Loads of cab drivers have been robbed with violence near an estate there over the years,

[@Ayztv]

I think there is a lot of discrimination these days by black cabs in terms of who they pick up. Often I cannot even hail one unless Im in a suit or very smart…this means I often just use uber now. It’s a shame but still think there’s an old boys club in the the service, rampant discrimination and racism. I’ve tested this over the years with work colleagues 100 yards up who are white and cab drivers tell me they aren’t accepting but accept my colleague….i love seeing there face when my colleagues say wait for me but it’s my experience as an Asian born and bred in London using cans for work near Canary Wharf and Mayfair is absolutely appalling if I’m honest and it’s only getting worse

[@burkyftw1993]

I went from public to private hire some time ago, I largely stick to known customers or referrals in order to make my life easier but when I do take a booking for a random customer I fall back on experience, vocabulary tends to correlate with behavior so when I am talking to a stranger on the phone who wishes to arrange a journey I use that to decide if I will do it or not. I've had people aggressively yell abuse at me the second I answer the phone, demanding I pick them up immediately, not sure where they thought that would get them but it certainly wasn't my car. Its all about learning which customers to look after and which ones to avoid like the plague.

[@MashaB-pk8hl]

My uncle drove a cab at night. He eventually built up a clientele based on ferrying them home from bars. He had his regular customers, and had no need to take anyone else.

[@b34rdy]

God i hate answering the phone, at weekends (im the only one out from 7am till 2pm but its a small town of about 60k people) the abuse i can get some days is rediculous, ive got to the point the junkies will not get picked up ever and if im in the rank and they get in then its money up front as alot of them have started doing runners lately. The great thing with it being such a small place is us taxi drivers all know each other so if somebody does a runner then all the drivers will know about it, this happened recently with 1 person who was already on the banned list but had moved...within an hour of her bumping everyone knew about it. word travels fast but its nice having a big list of regulars thats can keep you busy without having to pick up randoms. Also the old dears are the best customers because 99% of them aint bumping a fare.

[@mczcorp]

I am quite enjoying watching your video.... I think you have a generous heart and soul... keep it up ...

[@Cookie_guy-26]

Lovely video today tom! Funny to have the stereotypical runner have a bit of a sectoon

[@iggyhiggins9584]

03:33 Worth noting; "Should" isn't "Must" Same applies to Highway code.

[@bobbrewer5182]

i've known drivers who "forget" to turn on the meter in order to charge more than the metered rate for the job, and because regular passengers know this, they ALWAYS prompt us. A handful of times I've forgotten to start the meter myself, but I then only charge from the point I start the meter.

[@Ducky39101]

Love the videos Tom. Havent been in England for years. But really looking forward to going to London soon because of your videos!

[@PawelPopaniski]

My old man was a driver in the late 80s 90s he drove a fairway and a metrocab some of the things he use to bring home some treasures from the Back of the cab different times.

[@thealiamin]

Hiya Tom! Love these vids, hopefully will see tku in person one fay around London!

[@Pepijn-l5k]

Great inspriing vlogs, really like your enthousiasm@ greets from holland

[@ciaran82359]

Had a cousin who was a taxi driver. Kept a crowbar by his seat, never once had a customor who didnt pay up eventually. He was a bit of a head case though. RIP Alan.

[@justaddbricks5527]

16:07 Having been on that very trip back in 2016, I can say that it was truly a once in a lifetime experience. Karl (or Carl..) if you’re still out there as a cabby, you were a legend.

[@Killerzac]

So odd about Lison Grove! I know a lot of musicians who will go there because of the string shop there! Also the only place I’ve had a cabbie say they don’t know about by name

[@BrianPeterSimpson]

Great insight to your hard work thanks . I hope you guys get good exercise that's important

[@professorpopkiss]

I salute you and All cabbies and taxi drivers.

[@ianrigby7027]

Hey bud, Re the £60 fair, doesn’t the card machine approve before they leave the taxi, like in shops etc. Great video, love them ❤

[@thomasdalton1508]

Only if you wait while it says "please wait". I usually do, but a lot of people just leave as soon as the card has scanned.

[@danconnolly8937]

Really enjoy your videos. Good content from a thoroughly nice guy. Thank you sir.

[@TomtheTaxiDriver]

Thank you for your time to tune in!

[@cabottaxi]

I knew a taxi driver whose passenger left a fish supper in the back. He duly posted it through their letter box.

[@sanchoodell6789]

Sounds like an Uber or Uber Eats 😅

[@CallieMasters5000]

In high school I heard of groups of kids going together in a cab, then they all run off in different directions to meet up later.

[@wannabetrucker7475]

No brats in a cab ..... 😂😂

[@ssurmas]

I like you mate. Subscribed. Gonna catch black cabs more often now!

[@JumboJimbo747Gaming]

It is a citizens arrest when you lock them in a car and bringing them to a police station with a no pay person

[@kevinshanahan6064]

When India and Pakistan was “partitioned” can’t remember which country, the taxi drivers dropped loads of visiting rival fans at the ground of the first cricket test for free. Saying things like, pleased to have you here. Kind of took the tension out of the politics and the day back to cricket.

[@1mlister]

Surely between all the cabbies in London you can come up with a west ham lost propety trip rota. If you drop off the lost propety with paperwork at somewhere central by 5pm. You only need one cabby to take it all to west ham. Everyone would have to do the job once every 40 years.

[@TomtheTaxiDriver]

This is genius! Like jury duty for cabbies 😂

[@chriscoughlan5221]

Yrs ago in Walsall taxis asked for the fare upfront before they even started the engine!!

[@avienated]

Have you thought of doing a colaboration with Geography Challenges? He's the guy who beat your Geoguessr London record :)

[@johngreen6191]

Good one mate. So many scenarios in that job. You just have to trust most people these days but as we know it can all go wrong. What I hated was someone knowingly was never intending to pay. I had 2, one after the other. A waste of 90mins of my times and fuel.

[@kawaiilotus]

@15:00 I needed to go to Great Ormond Street Hospital as a Child, the cheeky bugger charged my mum, fantastically informative video as per usual the bit about lost property was my favourite bit!

[@BrockMak]

7:07 In our case, if there is a serial one, we can block their phone numbers (so long as the number doesn't belong to a business), or directly ask for money upfront. However: If an account holder (especially through ACC or a staff from a business account) picks up a street hail, then we can cancel the current cash job, check the account and reassign the job to the driver.

[@mfurmyr]

Several years since somebody ran away without paying. I have had several times people forgot something in my cab. The worst was when I was almost home at 3 AM and the last passengers rang and said they had forgotten av bottle of wine. I had to drive back aprox 25 miles. :-(

[@pauldunneska]

But did you charge them the full fare for the return journey. I hope you did.

[@mfurmyr]

I got some money but would rather prefere to deliver the next day. It was Christmas and I had worked for many hours.

[@kaelon9170]

5:55 While I have no idea how this works in the UK, in the Netherlands taxi drivers are absolutely allowed to lock non-payers in the cab and drive them to a nearby police station. I don't think many taxi drivers would go to those lengths though, as just like in the UK it's usually more lucrative for the driver to just get another job going as soon as possible.

[@mrustem3458]

Hello Tom I have been a cab driver for over 48 years. I once picked up two young ladies when I was a lot younger and after the usual chit chat from them, out of the blue one them asked how tall I was. I remember thinking before I answered, ‘what a strange question’ I replied ‘5 foot eight inches why. Well the reply knocked me for six. I was for once lost for words. I cannot here tell you what the reply was.

[@Ste3737]

You’re able to arrest under PACE 24a for indictable or either way offences!

[@ccityplanner1217]

If only companies had your attitude, Tom!

[@sionwhitecross2665]

Tom, you are a true gent 🤜

[@michaelw9285]

It would be an any person arrest if you kept them in a taxi to take them to a police station. Section 24A of PACE allows a person other than a constable to arrest without warrant any other person they suspect has committed an indictable offence, is committing an indictable offence or where an indictable offence has been committed and you know they've done it or have reasonable grounds to suspect they have done it - as long as that arrest is to prevent them causing harm to themselves or others, suffering an injury, causing loss or damage to property or a constable cannot assume responsibility for the arrested person. Section 3 of the Criminal Law Act allows any person to use such force as is reasonable in the circumstances to effect the lawful arrest of that person, prevent crime or arrest a person unlawfully at large. All of the making off without payment/fraud/theft offences are indictable in law (as in it can be tried at crown court, this includes things which have a default mode of trial like Shoplifting, because it's still the offence of theft). So there's your layman's any person arrest lesson for future fare dodgers.

[@FarikoUnited1]

I agree with the get them to confirm. I was taking a cab from the airport with parents in the US and my mom just said an ambiguous large hotel chain name and I tried very hard to make it clear suspecting there were multiple in the city. The driver wasn’t having it and insisted he knew which one we wanted. Turned out it was of course the wrong one and we wanted one called like village not hotel or something that way. Driver was very nice about and got tipped for both journeys but could have saved us all so much trouble to just confirm the correct place and not just assume that because I was a kid i wasn’t worth interacting with.

[@sdelliott]

Love the videos, Tom. That 100k is in sight!! 👍👍

[@Steve-f8x]

What about a system like they have at petrol pumps where you prepay using a card, then at the end of the journey the difference is refunded to the card. Wouldn't this prevent runners?

[@Dark_Embracer]

And that is why I left being a Taxi Driver many moons ago. You could never make any money from it your expenses were more than what you took in as a Taxi Driver and all the passenger nuisances you have to face everyday.

[@therealyogibear2k225]

All a taxi service means to me is a licence to print money. Just like a vet. My surgery is literally 2 miles down the road, and the cheapest taxi i could get was £15 each way. For 15 quids worth of fuel you could go about 50+ miles! And people wonder why i don't leave my house very often. I cant afford the exorbitant taxi prices! Being disabled and having to carry around a. Oxygen tank with me every where i go is also a hindrance, but the huge taxi prices do not help.

[@DonlishkoHellfire]

I'm under the impression that locking someone in your taxi and driving them to a police station would be classed as false imprisonment and although they can be charged for "bilking" they can have you charged as well.

[@BrockMak]

Ah, London cabbies have no backups as you have to radio system or a dispatch call centre. In my company: 0:57 If the driver doesn't call my supervisor to say they've found anything, they should go straight to the nearest police station and hand them in there (3:32). They can't really hand them into our office. Trouble for me is: They often don't report them until after the weekend or days later. So if I took a cab with a driver at night and I report them in the afternoon, he/she may well be off-duty in the afternoon, so I'd have to wait until they return to work to get the email (our email and meter are both on the tablet).

[@abcjelly]

4:07-7:29 can the driver unlock the door after the passenger has paid? 4:07-7:29 or is the door locked or unlocked at any random time if yk what i mean?

[@lukevirtualgameruk3523]

Don't you get the taxi feeling there not gonna pay before they enter lool

[@NightOwlGames]

i went to newcastle with family in car on new years eve to see some fireworks id been drinking vodka we start to argue so i just walked off i was walking round the city start getting people following me trying to talk to me not sure what their game was i didnt feel safe i just wanted to go home only had £50 in my account i asked a taxi driver if he would take me back to spennymoor but i didnt have much money couldnt cover the double time taxi fee.. he took me for £50 got me home safely the meter read £88.

[@izzzzzz6]

In short never take a black cab unless you can take out a 2nd mortgage on your house. Prices should be 1/3 of what they are.

[@tx41979]

Never gave to lost property always returned to customer as he called his phone spoke to them and returned plus never asked for money but paid for returning it. Had few runners over yrs

[@notmenotme614]

Up north with private hire taxis operated by certain people, whenever a customer has left their mobile phone behind, it mysteriously vanishes and can’t be found by the taxi driver 🤔

[@kylebaxter7125]

What a racist comment 😂

[@FoxDren]

​@@kylebaxter7125 facts ain't racist.

[@robertbritton656]

​@@FoxDrenAnd that isn't a fact.

[@Trek001]

@@listey As a Yorkshireman, I can confirm we _ARE_ a race

[@fern1416]

It would be so much easier if taxis in Edinburgh had the card machine in the back

[@hulme187]

Saw your video with Here Be Barr. Good stuff.

[@GWJUK]

I left my phone in an Uber the other week and they were contacted by Uber customer services and rang me. Brought the phone back from 5 miles away.

[@jetstreamuk]

I left my work phone in a bolt cab i was siting in the front of the cab and rang it as soon as the cab drove off and i see the driver pick it up and he didn’t answer, i tracked it on fine my iphone and then the driver knocked it off , i gave the driver a bad rating the next day and he contacted me to give the phone back and begged me to change the rating .

[@WrestleGermainia]

Love these videos, keep up the good work! Gotta leave a comment for the algorithm gods :)

[@RagingGamingHD1]

Not me thinking that my Siri was going off at 1:30

[@Tom_murray89]

Also if you have a new cab does the first passenger get the fair free of charge?

[@bigaspidistra]

My uncle who had been a London cabbie for over 40 years used to tell the story of when he got into a cab himself late at night & noticed the meter wasn't running. When he got to his destination the driver claimed his meter was broken & suggested a fare that he knew was excessive. My uncle struck a match under the meter display saying "there's nothing on the meter & it is nothing that you are going to get. And i will check with the Carriage Office on Monday that it has been 'fixed'.". He was a big bloke so noone would argue with him.

[@realhass]

@2:50 West Ham, the funny thing about that place is, tfl shares building with Stagecoach and customers often go to stagecoach instead 🤣.

[@colinsmith6116]

Thanks Tom, you’ve opened my eyes.

[@nadirhedioued3122]

60quid for a £25 journey jesus christ

[@sewelldel]

If you went outside London say someone from Kings Cross said take be to Colchester. Can you agree a fare before you set off as this is outside London and you dont want them to do a runner at the other end ? Or do you have to run it on the meter and hope they either oay or have enough money to cover the trip ?

[@TomtheTaxiDriver]

Yep. I can refuse it as it’s outside of the met London area and distance. But also worth for the passenger and driver to come to some kind of pre arrangement

[@sewelldel]

@@TomtheTaxiDriver Thanks for your reply lovin your videos

[@alit3407]

Speak to John the Taxi Driver mate, he normally just comes to another sort of ‘agreement’

[@kingeling]

Is there no way to obtain the records of payments, included rejected ones? Surely TFL's bank can help with this

[@stu2tru]

was the meter being at 4.20, you dropping a hint? lol no cab in london costs 4.20 :P

[@TomtheTaxiDriver]

Starts at £3.80, goes up in 20p increments

[@stu2tru]

​@@TomtheTaxiDriver fair enough lol. that's not actually too bad actually. i thought i would be a lot more. i doubt many would get a cab to go that far.

[@sammilburn445]

did you get your steering wheel retrimmed in the cab or did you buy a new one that is leather trimmed, rather than plastic. been meaning to ask for a while now

[@delik2348]

Who did the thumbnaill? Pretty good

[@thefoodiechannelcookingfro1822]

Ink never properly dries on paper notes.

[@Jimages_uk]

16:22 My old mate Alf standing next to the taxi

[@minhajhussain2312]

Taxi driver here, I just dash the phone out on the road or hope the next customers who get in steal it.

[@JasonStowers]

Great video tom as always

[@snacklofter]

👍👍 Nice Seiko! Been a good timepiece?

[@user-lh2fy1fn4w]

How didn’t you see the payment decline when they made the £60 payment with you?